Napping rolls



H. WHITTAKER NAPPING ROLLS July 9, 1929.

Filed Jan. 21, 1929 M. M M W W Patented July 9, 1929.

UNITED STATES HARRY WHITTAKER, OF METHUEN, MASSACHUSETTS.

NAPPING ROLLS.

Application filed January 21, 1929. Serial No. 834,047.

This invention has for its object the provision of means where bowing of the rolls in a napping machine will be prevented. At the presenttime the most general. construction ot napping rolls is a cylinder or thin tube which is mounted rotatably at its ends in heads which are. in turn. rotatable about a common axis. In order to obtain the desired. results. the heads are rotated at high speed and the rollsare also rotated at high speed. and in many machines ad acent rolls rotate in opposite directions. The surfaces ot' the rolls are covered with card clothing which runs in ci'mtent with the cloth or other material upon which a nap to he raised and by contact with the surface of the cloth lifts the fibers or hairs ot the same and produces the desired telted or napped surface. 'iihe cloth or other material is caused to travel around the series of rolls at the same time that the rolls are rotated in contact with the cloth and 'aused to travel in an orbital path. Owing to the high speed at which he heads travel, centrifugal action occurs and the central. portions of the rolls spring outwardly with respect to their end portions so that, an uneven contact w th the material ensues and an uneven nap is produced. The bowing and consequent. impertieet work varies accm'ding to the weight and size of the rolls but present in an appreciable degree in. all rolls. The pre ant invention, therefore. aims to provide a structure which will permit the continued use of rolls 'torn'ied of thin tubing so that the weight will be minimized and the powerneeessary to drive the rolls will not be excessive. while at the same time the rolls will. be held in a true cylindrical. formation with their walls concentric throughout with their axes and. theret m'e, maintain an even contact with the cloth or other material through the entire width of the latter. An. embodiment of the invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawing and will be hereinafter fully set forth.

In the drawing:

Figure 1 is a. perspective View of a napping machine,

Fig. 2 is an enlarged longitudinal section through one of the napping rolls, and

Fig. 3 is a section on the line 33 of Fig. 2 further enlarged.

In the drawing, the reference numeral 1 indicates one of the heads and the reference numerals 2 indicate napping rollers mounted in and carried by the heads so as to rotate therewith in the usual manner. In the construction and arrangement now generally employed, the heads 1 are constructed at close intervals about their peripheries with hearing sleeves 3 in which are rotatably engaged trunnions at the ends of the napping rolls, and these bearing sleeves are constructed with oil holes 4 closed by plugs 5. The heads 1 are rotated through gearing of known form and which need not be described in detail herein as it forms no part of the present invention and is Well known to workers in this art. The napping rolls are provided with annular flanges 6 adjacent their ends or otherwise formed to proiide drums or pulleys whichare engaged by driving belts, indicated at 7 in Fig. 1, whereby the rolls will be rotated about their own axes while being carried around the axes of the heads. In the most general arrangement. the belts? are provided at both ends of the napping drums and the two belts are arranged, to engage and act upon. alternate rolls whereby the rolls will be driven alternately in the same direction but at ditl'erent speeds. In. carrying out the present invention, there is provided. an axle S which is a solid rod and has its ends fitted tightly in the bearing sleeves If desired, clamping screws n'iay be substituted for the plugs in order to insure a rigid mounting of the rod but ordinarily the rod will be fitted so tightly in the bearing sleeves that no rotation will occur. Adjacent the ends 01 the rod. and at the center thereof in the illust *ated arrangement, raceways 9 are secured thereon and at corresponding points within the tubular roll collars or reinforcing bands secured, anti-friction rollers or balls 11 carried by an outer raceway 12 being provided. between said collars and the raceways 9. lVhile I have illustrated three sets of bearings and raceways, it will be understood that the number of the raceways and bearings may vary according to the length of: the roll but the bearings should. be equidistantly spaced and they constitute reinforcement-s to strengthen the roll and maintain the concentric relation of the same to the rod 8 throughout the length of the roll and at all times during operation.

The napping drum equipped with rolls embodying my invention is operated in precisely the same manner as napping drums are now operated and the rolls move in contact with the cloth or other material in the same manner that the rolls now operate to produce a nap. Inasmuch, however, as the rod 8 is solid and rigid and is secured nonrotatably at its ends, it does not rotate in the bearing sleeves and is simply carried around by the drum heads in an inert manner. The rolls, however, will separately rotate about their respective axle rods and inasmuch as they are reinforced by the anti-friction bearings and mountings, they will be held against bowing 'notwithstand.ing that the drum heads may be driven at a very high speed. The tendency to bow under centriitt gal. action is ellectually resisted by the several bearings which constitute reinforcements for the rolls without adding perceptibly to the weight of rolls new ordinarily employed.

Inasmuch as the tendency of the rolls to bow is overcome, an even nap is produced upon the material and a higher grade product obtained'than has heretofore been possible with the same speed of operation. The arrangement does not necessitate any reconstruction of the drum heads nor any rearrangement of the operating gearing, but the invention may be applied to existing napping machines well as embodied in machines to be hereafter built. The collars 10 and the raceways may be secured in place in any con venient manner, as by shrinking, welding or otherwise.

Having thus described the invention, I claim:

1. A planetary napping machine comprising revoluble heads, a rigid axle rod extending the full distance between the heads and mounted stationarily at its ends in the heads, a tubular roll disposed concentrically about the rod between the heads, and rotatable reinit'orcements fitted between the rod and the roll at the ends thereof and intermediate the ends whereby bowing ot the roll will be resisted.

2. A planetary napping machine comprising revoluble heads, a rigid axle rod extending the full distance between the heads, means for securing the red at its ends in the heads whereby it will be non-rotatably held, a tubular shell disposed concentrically about the rod between the heads, and anti-friction bearings disposed equi-distantly within the shell and between the shell and the axle red to prevent bowing of the shell and maintain the concentric relation of the same to the rod.

In testimony whereof I atlix my signature.

HARRY HITTAKER. 

